


The Lesser Miracle

by tiggeryumyum



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Gen, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-08 02:05:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10375437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tiggeryumyum/pseuds/tiggeryumyum
Summary: Four-year-old Jean's favorite things are: spaghetti, dinosaurs, his nanny Marco, and green eyes (he's pretty sure).





	

Jean's mom died four years ago, but he was just a baby then, so he doesn't remember it. 

There's a photo album Jean likes, and there are pictures of her inside it, but it belongs in his father's room. Jean has to _sneak_ when he wants to see it. He sneaks into father's room, sneaks down the hallway, and sneaks it under his own bed, so no one can see him when he's looking through it. 

In some of the pictures his mom is a teenager – Jean doesn't like those ones. They are boring. He doesn't recognize the lady in them as his mom, her hair is too big and curly and her shape is thin and wrong. He always skips past those pages, toward the ones in the back where she's holding a baby, and that baby is Jean. 

He doesn't feel any connection to his past, baby self, red faced and screaming, but he likes to study his mom. She has a very nice face, very round cheeks that remind Jean of a squirrel, like Mrs. Claus (just in cartoons and books, Jean's never seen the real Mrs Claus, of course). 

In the pictures, his mom smiles, and she holds baby Jean very close, lifting him up for the camera. In the pictures, she kisses baby Jean's cheek and she holds baby Jean in her lap.

Jean stares at the pictures for a very long time.

Marco is in some of them, too!

Marco knows a lot about his mom, and tries to answer all of Jean's questions about her, but sometimes he can't – like what her favorite dinosaur was, or her favorite color, or if she liked dogs or ice skating. Marco knows other things, though! Marco knows that she liked watching sports, and painting, and cooking. Marco is Jean's nanny, even though he is a boy (boys can be nannies sometimes). He tells Jean that Jean's mom was really happy to be a mom, and loved Jean _so much._

Jean really likes to hear that. He thinks about Marco saying it as he looks through the photo album, and he smiles and kicks his feet.

" _Jean!_ Get down here!"

Jean hurries out from under the bed and runs down the stairs, but then goes careful down the steps, because he's wearing his slippery socks.

That's his father's _Now, Mister_ voice! That means _right now, no messing around!_

"Oh, good lord," his father says when he sees Jean. Jean doesn't like the face his father makes. It reminds Jean of how he sticks out his tongue and groans when he gets pickles on a burger, and Marco told him the word is _disgust_. Jean looks down at his feet, and wishes he was still under the bed. " _Marco!_ "

"Sorry! Sorry, one second – " Marco's walking down the hallway, carrying boxes, and when Jean recognizes them as the _Christmas decorations_ , he gasps! 

"I'll help! Let me help!" he says, so excited he bounces down the rest of the steps, running over to grab one of the boxes.

" _No_ , Jean, you're already a mess," Jean's father says. "Look at his suit, Marco. I told you he needed to be ready before six."

Marco sets the boxes on the kitchen table and turns to look at Jean. Jean sticks his tongue out at him. 

"He's got an extra jacket that should match," Marco says, raising an eyebrow at Jean's funny face. "I can wipe down his pants – "

"Well, hurry," Jean's father says, walking out of the room. "This thing isn't going to start until we get there, we can't have a bunch of clients just standing around with their thumbs up their asses."

"Marco," Jean says when Marco picks him up, carrying him back up the steps. "Marco, are we doing the tree? Are we going to put up the Christmas tree?"

"Yep, this weekend," Marco says. "You're covered in dust, what were you doing?"

"Nothing," Jean says, looking at his fingers. He likes for his sneaky time with his mom to be secret, but Marco knows. When they get to Jean's bedroom, Marco sets Jean down, and looks under the bed.

He sighs. "Make sure to put the album back before your father notices, alright?"

"Alright!" Jean says. "Can I put the star on the tree, Marco? Are we gonna do cookies like last year?" 

"Yes and yes," Marco says, smiling. "Arms out."

Jean sticks out his arms, and Marco takes off his jacket, then lifts him up on to the dresser, using a cloth to wipe at the dust clinging to Jean's pants.

"Are you going to write a letter to Santa, Marco?"

"Nope," Marco says. "I already had my turn when I was a kid. Santa needs more time to read letters from kids like you."

"Oh," Jean says, and tries to imagine Marco as a little boy, one his age. "What did you ask for when you were little?"

"Oh, jeez," Marco says, eyebrows going crinkly as he thinks. "A sled. A Lego set. Some binoculars. I really wanted a dog, too, but Santa's not supposed to do presents like that. Hm... it's kind of hard to remember."

Jean hates when adults can't remember important things like this! Jean promises he will never forget what he wants when he gets old. "I'm going to ask for a remote control car!" Jean tells him. "Except I want it to be a helicopter. They can actually fly, I saw a video of it."

"You want some Space Ranger action figures too, right?"

"Yes! I want the whole team! Right now I only have – I only have – "

"Green and Black Rangers, right? From your birthday?"

"Yeah, but I want all of them!" 

Marco laughs and lifts Jean back onto the floor, and helps him put his new jacket on. 

"Alright, this an important event for your dad," Marco tells him, smoothing down the jacket, spinning Jean around and fiddling with his bow tie. "So you're going to have to remember the rules."

"You're not coming?"

"Sorry, Jeanbo." Marco looks him right in the eye. His expression is serious. "Remember the rules?"

"Yes," Jean says, pouting. 

"Come on. Say them."

"Keep my questions til the end... don't touch anything... stay close to father," Jean says.

"And?"

" _Marcooo_ ," Jean says, blushing, covering his face.

" _And_?"

" _Whisper_ to go potty." That's a new rule. Cause sometimes Jean is _an embarrassment_. If he asks lots of questions or if he touches something he's not supposed to, or he talks too loud (especially about the potty). Marco never gets embarrassed if Jean does any of those things!! He wishes Marco was going to be with him today. Then he would just have to remember the _regular_ rules.

"Good job! Alright, let's hurry," Marco says, standing. Jean pouts harder and holds up his arms for Marco, upset that he isn't coming along, so he wants to hug Marco extra hard, as long as he can. "Poor Jeanbo," Marco says, patting Jean's back, carrying him down the stairs. 

"He's not an infant," his dad says. "Put him down. Come on, Jean."

"Okay," Jean says.

" _Yes, sir_ ," his father corrects.

"Yes, sir."

Marco helps him put on his boots. He gives Marco a goodbye hug and tells him, "Have fun, I love you, goodbye!" then walks out to the car. 

"You have to be too old for this thing," Jean's father says, staring at Jean's booster seat like he hates it. His father doesn't know how to work the straps and buttons, and it always takes a long time when Jean's father tries to get him in and out of it. "Congratulations, Jean, you're graduating to the front seat."

"Really?!" Jean says, jumping, excited. Jean's father smiles and nods and helps him buckle in the big boy seat belt. He can't wait to tell Marco! "Are we going to a party?"

"Yeah, a party for my career. My clients are going to be there. So you have to behave yourself, understood?"

"Okay."

" _Yes, sir._ "

"Yes, sir."

"I swear, I don't know what it is with your generation," his father says, shaking his head as he drives. 

His father talks a little bit more like that – angry, but not at Jean, so Jean doesn't pay attention. Sitting up in the front seat is what big kids do, and Jean is excited to be one, even though he can't really see out the windows without his booster seat. He kicks his feet and grips the seat belt with both hands.

"Do you want to sing some ABCs?" Jean asks.

"… What?" his father asks, sounding surprised.

"Me and Marco sing ABCs," Jean says. "In the car."

"I mean. Sure. Why not."

Jean wiggles in his seat to get upright and sing better, taking a deep breath, " _A, B, C, D..._ " he sings the whole thing but his father doesn't join in.

"Nice," he says at the end instead, nodding. "Good job."

Jean smiles, and they pull into the parking lot of a big building.

Sometimes Jean goes to fun parties, and those have balloons or cakes or presents or a play place. Jean is disappointed when he walks in with his father and sees this party doesn't have any of that. There are only adults, and they're just talking to each other – that's it, no movies or games or anything. 

He stays close to his father and frowns. It's very boring for a very long time. 

"Oh my goodness! Is this Jean?"

The lady who said this is tall, and speaks very loudly. She's walking toward them and Jean is nervous, wanting to hide behind his father, but his father doesn't like it when he does that. He wishes Marco was here. 

"Say hello to Mrs. Jaeger, Jean," says his father.

The lady is smiling, bending down closer. He can smell her perfume and it's very pretty. 

"Hello Mrs. Yeh- Yegner," he says, shy and quiet. 

"Hi there, Jean. I'm Carla! I was friends with your mom," she says. 

Jean gasps, "Really?" 

"Really! Gosh, the last time I saw you – you must have still been in diapers!"

Jean covers his face, blushing. 

"Oh, sorry, honey," she laughs. "You're obviously a much bigger boy now. Grisha!" she's waving over to another adult, a man. He's holding the hand of a kid around Jean's size. "This is my husband and my son, Eren. Eren, these are our good friends – you two met a few years ago, but you might not remember."

Jean definitely does not remember Eren.

Eren has bright green eyes and messy black hair., and he looks at Jean like he thinks Jean is a very suspicious character. His mom pushes him closer to Jean. "Be nice, Eren."

"… Hi," Eren says. 

"Hi. I'm Jean Kirsten," Jean says. "I'm four and a half."

Eren stands straighter, more interested in Jean now. "I'm four and a half!"

"You two are exactly the same age! You were born just one week apart," Eren's mom says. Jean and Eren look at each other in surprise. Jean's never met anyone with a birthday so close! "Why don't you two keep each other company while the adults talk?"

"Uhm," Jean says. Sometimes Jean likes new friends, but sometimes they make him nervous. Suddenly he feels nervous. He looks down at his shoes and plays with part of his coat. 

"Do you go to school?" Eren asks.

"No," Jean says. "Next year I'm gonna do kindergarten."

"I do preschool," Eren says. "Yesterday I got three gold stars, cause I'm a good helper."

"Oh!" Jean says. Gold stars sound impressive, and he bites his lip, trying to think of something impressive, too. "I got to ride in the front seat of the car today."

"Really??"

"Yeah!" 

"But you're just the same size as me!" Eren says, looking very angry. They measure each other carefully and it turns out Jean is just a little bit taller. Eren glares down at Jean's fingers, showing the difference in height. "I guess I have to get that tall."

"Yeah," Jean says, nodding knowledgeably. 

"What's your favorite color?" Eren asks. 

"Green," Jean says right away, because he really likes the color Eren's eyes are. "And red, and orange, and blue and – and actually I like all the colors."

"I like red," Eren says. "Except my favorite Space Rangers are Green and Yellow. I have Green and Yellow rangers in my room. If we were there we could play with them. If you wanted."

"I have Red and Black rangers," Jean says. Eren looks at at him sharply. "But I want to get Green and Yellow, too!"

Eren smiles. "Hey, Jean. I have a secret."

Jean perks right up at that! Secrets are exciting!! "What?"

Eren leans super close and puts his lips against Jean's ear. And he _licks_. 

Jean screams in surprise, wiping at his ear with both hands. " _Yucky!!!_ Eren! I have a secret too!!"

Eren cackles and runs away. "No, you don't!"

" _I do!_ "

Jean eventually gets him and Eren won't let him near his ear, so he just licks Eren's hands. So then Eren licks his cheek, so then Jean licks his nose. They're both laughing, so it's not a fight, he's not being _bad_ , at least he thought, but then his father is there, and he grabs Jean's shoulder and _yanks_ him away. 

"What is _wrong_ with you? Don't _lick_ people, you're not a dog."

"Oh, I apologize – that's that's probably from Eren," Mr. Jaeger says, and picks Eren up. "He picked it up from his friends at preschool, I'm afraid." 

"Well," Jean's father says. He doesn't say anything else, but he doesn't let go of Jean's shoulder.

Jean has to stand next to him for the rest of the party, and he's sad about it, until he looks over and sees Eren watching. Eren is frowning like he's sorry Jean is in trouble. When they sit down to eat, he can see Eren's table. Eren picks up his spoon tips it back and forth like it's waving, so Jean grins, and picks up his fork, and waves back. 

~

"Marco, what does it mean if you have green eyes?"

"It means – that someone in your family had green eyes, and they passed it down to you." 

"What if they're really, really, _really_ green?"

"Hm. I don't know if I understand your question," Marco says. "But I don't think it's any different from any other eye color. Why?"

Jean shrugs. Marco is usually right, but Jean's pretty sure he's wrong this time. It has to mean _something_ , because Jean keeps thinking about them. 

"Do you like green eyes?" Marco asks.

"Yeah," Jean says. "I think."

"They are _unique_ ," Marco says. "And that means it's _rare_ , not many people have green eyes. Did you meet someone with green eyes?"

"My new friend Eren," Jean says. "I met him at the party. His mom was friends with my mom." 

"Oh! The Jaegers? Wow, it's been a while since they've been over," Marco says. "You used to nap with Eren when you were both babies."

"Really??"

"Yep, in your bedroom."

"But we're not babies now."

"Nope," Marco agrees. 

He and Marco are decorating Christmas cookies. There's lots of different colors of frosting that Marco scooped into bowls, but you're only allowed to eat frosting if it's on a cookie! Not by itself! Sometimes Jean sneaks a lick though. He finishes frosting the angel cookie and grabs an un-frosted star cookie.

"I'm making a special cookie now," he tells Marco. 

"I'll make a special one, too," Marco says. 

"We should trade them!" Jean says, adding more frosting. He makes Marco the very best cookie, with lots and lots of frosting, and some marshmallows, and some sprinkles, and chocolate chips on the very top. He's sad to give it away, especially because Marco did not do a very good job on Jean's cookie. It is only just one layer of frosting.

"Thank you," Jean says anyway, because that is good manners.

"Thank _you_ ," Marco says. "Wow, this is quite the masterpiece."

Jean smiles really big at the praise, and eats Marco's boring cookie. "Do you think Eren likes to do frosting?"

"Probably," Marco says. "Do you want to see more of Eren?"

"Yeah!!" Jean says, and hopes his father takes him to another party soon, so he can.

~

"Are we going on a car ride?" Jean asks when it's the weekend, and Marco helps him with his sneakers, because they have laces and that's tricky.

"Yeah – we're going to the Jeagers, remember?"

"Can we go to the park after?"

"Maybe, if there's time," Marco says. "I think you'll be pretty tired from playing, though."

Jean thinks about that, confused, while Marco zips up his puffy jacket. "I can play at – Yegger?"

"Yes, remember? Your new friend?"

Jean does not remember, but when they start walking toward the car, he gets excited again. "Can I go in the front seat?"

"'Fraid not," Marco laughs, and hoists him into his booster seat, buckling him in place. "You've still got some growing to do before you're ready for that."

"But I did last time! I did it with father!"

"Did you?" Marco says, but his voice means he doesn't believe Jean and he gets huffy, and kicks, but his legs are too short to reach the seat!

"Yes!! Really, for real! In real life!"

"Well," Marco says, and he doesn't sound happy. "That's very dangerous. If he got in an accident, you could be really hurt in the front seat."

"But – maybe you won't get an accident anyway."

"We'll just play it by the rules for now."

Jean is feeling a bad mood in his tummy, and it builds up to his cheeks so they puff up, and he pouts. He looks out the window but he doesn't know any of the streets. 

They pass a park and Jean gasps. "Marco!! Marco, let's go there!"

"Maybe on the way back, okay?"

Jean watches it pass, and then flops back into his seat, and gives a small whine of frustration.

"What's wrong?"

"Marco," he whines.

"You want to go to the park?"

"Yes!" 

"Mm, you're in a grumpy mood today." 

"No! Only because I want to play at the park!!"

"We're almost there, alright? Just be patient."

But Jean isn't patient because they're not going to a park! He's being grumpy when Marco stops at a stranger's house and opens the car door and lifts Jean out of his seat. Jean crosses his arms and stomps up the steps of the porch.

"Remember the rules, okay? Good manners, Jean," Marco says.

Eren's mom opens the door! Jean gasps.

"Hi, I'm glad you made it!" she says, then smiles down at Jean. "It's good to see you again, Jean. Eren is very excited to have you over."

"Hi," Jean says, feeling bashful again cause Eren's mom still smells pretty. Marco and Eren's mom talk as they walk through Eren's house. It has toys everywhere, even in the hallway! There's dolls and toy cars and a toy car track to race them on, and a big truck, and Legos, and a table that's his size, for coloring and painting probably, and maybe snacks! "Marco, look! Are we coloring?"

"If you want," Eren's mom says. "Eren! Your friend is waiting!"

"Okay!" Eren's voice comes from upstairs, and then a door opens. Eren smiles really big when he sees Jean and runs down the steps. 

"Are we going to color?" Jean asks, looking at the table again. There are coloring books and crayons!

"No," Eren says, and takes Jean's hand and takes him upstairs, to where his bedroom is. "This is my bed, and this is my Space Ranger – and so is this one." Eren points to his bed, and it has the Yellow and Green action figures sitting on it. "Sometimes I sleep with them, but sometimes I sleep with Pancake. Or sometimes both."

"Oh," Jean says.

"This is Pancake," Eren says. He picks up a fat, beat up, stuffed elephant. Jean touches Pancake's stomach. 

"Soft."

Eren nods and puts Pancake down. "You can play with the Yellow one. Cause of your hair, okay?"

Jean smiles really big, liking that. "And you get the Green one, cause of your eyes!"

They play Space Rangers on the bed, and it's fun, but then Jean discovers something amazing outside of Eren's bedroom window. "Eren!! You have a park in your backyard!!" 

"Yeah! That's my swings!" Eren says, and Jean gasps, and scoots off the bed.

"Marco! Marco, Eren has a park!!!" Jean yells as he jumps down the stairs. "Come on, Eren!"

Marco has to help him with his jacket and shoes again, because there is still snow outside, and Jean is so impatient he has the wiggles, so it takes longer! But that's okay because playing outside with Eren is probably the best thing. They run around, and swing on the swings, and go down the slide, and play tag, and they're really loud, and it's okay, because it's good manners to be loud outside!

When they go inside for snacks, it's cookies!

"Do you like to do frosting?" Jean asks Eren, dunking the cookie into the milk. 

"Yeah," Eren says, and Jean is happy that he guessed right. 

"Did you do the frosting on these ones?"

"Yeah," Eren says.

"No, Eren," Eren's mom says. "Those are from the store."

"Oh," Eren says. 

"I did frosting with Marco yesterday. And we're going to do the Christmas tree tomorrow."

"Mommy!" Eren says. "Can we do the Christmas tree??"

"Later, Eren, remember? We're getting a live tree this year so we have to get it later, so it won't die."

"Is our tree gonna die?!" Jean asks Marco, worried. He didn't know Christmas trees could _die_!!!

"No, our tree is fake. It can stay up all year. It won't die."

"Why don't we get a tree like that?" Eren says, his voice is a whine. His face is getting red. Jean keeps eating his cookie and watching. When Eren's mom tries to remind him about how the live tree will be fun, Eren just gets more upset, until he is crying. They decide that it's time for a nap.

"Do you want to go home," Marco asks, "or do you want to take a nap with Eren?"

"Nap!" Jean says, smiling big when he remembers Pancake, and Eren's bedroom. 

"We're trying to get him off naps," Eren's mom tells Marco when she picks Eren up, carrying him up the stairs. "It can get make for some rough evenings. Does Jean still nap?"

"No!" Jean says, loudly. "Only sometimes!"

"Barely ever. His father wanted him off them, but honestly it's just a rush to bedtime the whole afternoon," Marco says. "He's practically in pajamas right after dinner."

They put Jean and Eren down in Eren's bed. It's dark and quiet in Eren's room because they turned off the light and closed the blinds. Eren is still awake, too, and his eyes are red from his crying.

"Eren?"

"Yeah?"

"I like that your eyes are green," Jean says.

Eren gasps sharply, and looks very serious. "Then you're my boyfriend."

"What!"

"I like your eyes, too," Eren says. "So we'll play every day. Okay? And then we do this." He kisses Jean's cheek.

"Okay," Jean says, and kisses Eren's cheek back, and when Jean asks, Eren lets him hold Pancake.

~

They don't play together every day, but they are still boyfriends, because when Eren _does_ comes over to play at Jean's house, Eren kisses him on the cheek again! This time it's too cold to play outside, and Jean doesn't have a park back there anyway. They play in Jean's room.

"This is my bed," Jean says, pointing it out like Eren did before. "Uhm. My Space Rangers go in the toy box, so I don't sleep with them."

"You have lots of clothes," Eren says, looking in Jean's closet. 

"Yeah," Jean says. 

"You don't have lots of toys."

"I do!" Jean says, and runs over to his toy box. Eren looks inside, and shakes his head.

"That's only this many!" Eren says, and puts his fingers very close together. "I have this many!" Eren spreads his arms wide.

Jean frowns and closes his toy box and crosses his arms. 

"But – uhm. They're still good," Eren says. "Uhm. I'm sorry. Sorry. I like your toys."

Jean is still upset, but he opens the toy box again. He pulls out the Black ranger, and gives it to Eren, because of his hair.

"Thank you for sharing," Eren says. He pokes Jean's chest with his finger. "You get a gold star for being a good sharer!"

Jean gasps, and looks down at the imaginary star Eren gave him. He tells Marco about it later when they have snacks, showing him his shirt, pointing to where it would be if it was a real gold star.

"Good work, Jean!" Marco says, and because he did such a good job, they get chocolate milk!

"I like your new daddy better," Eren tells him when he drinks it.

"He's not my daddy!" Jean laughs. "Marco is my nanny! He takes care of me. My mom got him when I was a baby because she was sick."

"Oh. Is she all better?"

"No," Jean says, sadly. "She was so sick she died."

"Oh no," Eren says, covering his mouth. He puts his arm over Jean's shoulder and then gives him another boyfriend kiss on the cheek. Sometimes Jean feels very sad about his mom, but not right now, so he giggles and kisses Eren back. 

After snack time, he sneaks to get the photo album to show to Eren, out in the living room this time, and not under his bed.

Eren points to one of the pictures where is mom is laying down. "Is this the picture where she dies? Cause she's in the hospital?"

"No, that's when I was born."

"What about this one?"

"No! Eren! There's not any dying pictures!"

"So these are just normal ones?"

"Yes," Jean says.

"Okay," Eren says. And then he says he's bored of looking at them, so they leave the photo album and go play in Jean's bedroom, and Marco shows them how to make a fort with the sheets. They play all day, but then Eren starts to get grumpy in the afternoon, like before, and it makes Jean grumpy, too. Marco turns off the lights and they take a little nap in their fort, and when Jean wakes up, Eren's mom is there!

"Mommy?" Eren asks, waking up.

"Yeah, sweetie. It's time to go home," she tells Eren. This time Jean is still so sleepy, Marco carries him down the stairs. Jean rests his head on his shoulder while Eren's mom helps Eren with his shoes and jacket and hat. Jean's ready to say goodbye, but it turns out that Eren's mom has a question for Jean!

"Would you like to be in a play?"

"Yeah," Jean says, yawning.

"Do you know what a play is, Jean?" Marco asks.

"Uhm."

"A play is super fun!!" Eren says, excited. "You go on a stage in front of everyone, and you wear a costume, and sometimes you say stuff, but it's important to not say stuff when you should be quiet!"

"Oh," Jean says. 

"I help with the community theater program," Eren's mom says. "And every year we put on a Christmas play, and we need kids like you to pretend to be someone else on a stage. Do you think you'd like to do that?"

"Uhm," Jean says, not really sure anymore, but Eren smiles and nods, so Jean says, "okay."

"That's great! I think you'll have a really good time."

"That means we can practice together!"

"We'll have to ask his father," Marco says. "But we'll let you know."

They say goodbye, and Jean waves at Eren, "Okay, have fun, I love you!"

When Eren's mom laughs, Eren frowns at her. "It's okay, because we're _boyfriends_."

"Oh, really?" Eren's mom says, like she is still laughing a little as they walk down the porch. Marco closes the door behind them, so Jean doesn't hear what Eren says back.

~

Because he took a nap, Jean has a late bedtime. He gets to watch a whole movie after dinner, and picks a cartoon one, about a witch and a blimp. The movie is quiet and nice, and by the end of it Jean is sleepy again. Marco just helped him put on his pajamas when his father shouts from another room – 

"Jean! Get down here, _now!_ "

His voice is super angry, so Jean hurries as fast as he can down the stairs! His father is in the living room, and Jean knows why right away when he sees what his father is holding!

"Uh oh," Jean says, because it's the photo album!

"Jean," his father says. "Did you steal this from my room?"

Jean nods, feeling scared.

"Jean, these photos are all I have left of your mother. Do you understand? Do you understand how important these are?"

Jean nods, so scared that he starts to sniffle and cry. "Yes …"

"Don't snivel at me," his father says. "Stand up straight, and apologize!"

"I-I'm sorry," Jean says.

" _Sir_."

"Sir," Jean says. "I'm sorry!"

"Apology accepted. Now – don't go in my room," his father says. "Understood? If you want to look at photos of your mother, come get me."

Jean nods. He goes to his room and cries on his bed, because he feels so sad. 

When Marco comes in he cries harder and puts his arms up because he wants Marco to hug him. 

"Hey, Jeanbo," Marco says. He hugs Jean very tight. 

"Father doesn't want me to look at the pictures," Jean says.

"He's just worried about the photo album getting messed up if you look at it by yourself."

"No, cause – " Jean sniffles. "When – when I ask to look, he gets mad. So I know he doesn't want to let me look at it."

Marco is quiet for a second. "Your father… is scared."

Jean is suspicious of that, and frowns at Marco. "Scared?"

"He is. He's scared of the photo album because it has pictures of bad things that happened," Marco says. "It's not that he doesn't want _you_ not to look at it, he doesn't want _anyone_ to look at it."

"But mom isn't scary." 

"Different things are scary when you're an adult," Marco says. "Just be careful okay? You have to put the album back _every single time_ you look. Leaving it in the living room was very irresponsible."

"Okay."

Marco hugs him super tight, then shakes him back and forth a little until Jean laughs.


End file.
